Making Childhood Dreams Come True

“I grew up in Toronto – somewhere quite far from the ocean. I loved the outdoors and nature, spending most of my time in the mud looking for bugs, or in the bushes catching snakes. My introduction to the ocean was at age 5 when I visited Ripley’s Aquarium in Myrtle Beach; it was love at first sight. From then on, I knew I wanted to become a marine biologist.” – Mackenzie Burke

Mackenzie followed her dream by moving to the East Coast. “While it seemed scary at first, attending Dalhousie and moving to the Maritimes will always be the best decision I have made” she says. “I am so grateful for the opportunities I have had within Dalhousie and through co-op. I am excited to see where my degree and experiences take me.”

She completed two work terms with Dr. Hugh MacIntyre in the Dalhousie University MicroAlgal Process Evaluation Lab (MAPEL). “The lab studies phytoplankton, organisms incredibly important to global diversity and climate change mitigation,” says Mackenzie. “At MAPEL, I learned technical skills with an emphasis on growing and maintaining cultures of microalgae for experiments. In addition, discussions and exercises focused on current phytoplankton research in the global community and the use of analytical methods to interpret experimental data.”

“Dr. MacIntyre pushed me outside of my comfort zone and challenged me to strengthen my belief in myself. Co-op students were assigned readings tackling issues of inequality in STEM (i.e. gender, race, neurodiversity) followed by productive discussions. These meetings were incredibly informative and amazing to see as a neurodivergent woman in STEM,” she says. “It changed my perspective on how I go about life and how my “quirks” are strengths rather than weaknesses." Mackenzie says that her time at MAPEL boosted her self-confidence, and she was given more leadership opportunities over time. “I began to really grow into myself as a neuro-divergent woman in STEM.”

Mackenzie also completed a work term with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC). “My main role involved aiding in experiments to optimize microalgal growth of species containing high levels of target amino acids. This was an amazing opportunity to experience microalgal cultivation on a large scale as I got to run experiments using their 300 L algal bioreactors among taking part in other small-scale tests,” she says.  “There was an emphasis on “learn by doing”, which can be intimidating at first, but I found it extremely beneficial for my professional development, “The environment was tailored around learning as much as I could during my stay.”

Although Mackenzie initially wanted to work with whales or sharks, co-op has altered her career path. “I never realized how many things could be studied under marine biology until I was exposed to a biological oceanography lab,” she says. “I remember being extremely nervous because it was the opposite of what I thought I wanted to do, however, after the first few weeks I realized how enjoyable researching the ocean's little guys could be.”

What’s next for Mackenzie? “My future involves pursuing an MSc and a career in research,” she says. “While I would like to continue working with phytoplankton, I am not going to close myself off to other opportunities that come around in the future.”

Want to apply to Science Co-op? go to myCareer

Questions about the application process? Contact askcoop@dal.ca